Everyone at every rank matters' : inclusive intercultural communication in higher education

Abstract

This portfolio is submitted in the context of a professional doctorate degree in Cultural Research. It comprises three work-based research projects serving both organisational interests and interdisciplinary fields of academic scholarship, via publication in peer reviewed journals. The candidate has approached this work from three vantage points. First, as a transdisciplinary psychotherapist trained in Process Oriented Psychology, second, as a Student Counsellor at the University of South Australia (UniSA), and third, as a Teaching and Learning Development Officer embedding globally relevant communication skills into undergraduate engineering courses and programs. The analysis is grounded in intercultural and Process Oriented theory and uses a range of methodologies. It has been conducted from the vantage of an embedded practitioner researcher collaborating closely with both professional and academic staff in a range of university-wide contexts. The portfolio develops a new, relational approach to enhancing intercultural communication centering on the concept of 'Rank', or personal power. Concepts about the effect of Rank in communication are introduced in the classroom to stimulate awareness of differing attitudes and behaviours within interactions. Understanding how power dynamics can either exclude or include people can act as a catalyst for incorporating alternative perspectives in intercultural communication. The analysis develops and evidences the argument that preparing graduates with the global competencies to work in cosmopolitan societies involves a shift in pedagogic practices to respect and incorporate the diversity of knowledges and experiences found within the students and staff. This portfolio draws upon significant scholarly works to move beyond current thinking in intercultural education and develop a relational approach to intercultural competence that promotes interpersonal and contextual awareness. Each project explores, in various ways, the embedding of intercultural skill development into student learning at UniSA. Over the course of this doctorate an entirely new model for teaching intercultural competency has evolved, known as Learning for Change (LFC). Classroom interventions developed through close cooperation with course educators, academic developers and substantial support from senior management.

Date of Award	2015
Original language	English